The candidate who would fill the vacant Alpha Borough Council seat was a mystery to the mayor and the councilman tasked with making nominations until officials arrived at the New Year’s Day re-organization meeting.

Mayor Ed Hanics said he advised all three candidates to show up that day to be sworn in by state Sen. Richard Codey, a Democrat from Essex County, if appointed by council.

“Any of the three could have been sworn in right there,” Hanics said. “I had no warning, no pre-call, who was going to be nominated. I thought it was a good gesture on my part to make sure they were all there.”

Councilman Harry Zikas Jr. said he arrived at the Jan. 1 meeting with the understanding the mayor was still recommending Tracy Grossman for the position. Grossman was the runner-up in the November election for two council seats. Councilman Mike Schwar asked at the Dec. 30 meeting to postpone the vote because he had questions about the candidates.

Council did not discuss the nominees in a closed session Dec. 30 or publicly before the Jan. 1 vote, Hanics and Zikas said.

They said they didn’t entertain any questions from Schwar, who did not return phone calls requesting clarification about his concerns. Zikas said his motion to appoint Grossman failed for the second time at the reorganization meeting.

Rooks said he chose not to run for one of the two council seats available in November because his job refereeing high school sports would have prevented him from properly doing the job. Since then, he’s decided to scale back officiating to serve the borough where he grew up.

"I see some things in the borough that I think can be done better, and I have viable ideas to make things better for the residents of Alpha," said Rooks, a lifelong borough resident.

Those ideas include increasing shared services and making the yard waste recycling area more efficient. He declined to elaborate on what shared services he’d like to explore, noting that he hadn’t yet discussed the matter with the rest of council.

For months, council has been discussing nonresidents dumping at the compost area intended for residents only. Other materials, including a couch, have ended up there, and security cameras have been of little use to enforce the rules.

Rooks said he’d like to hire someone to monitor the area to make sure Alpha residents are the ones using it.

Rooks said he’s considering running for the seat formerly held by Savary when it’s on the ballot again next year. Savary’s term didn't expire until December 2015, but the former councilman resigned after pleading guilty in September to disorderly tampering with public records.

Rooks said he wants to be able to see the initiatives he hopes to start this year to completion.

"Alpha is a great place to live. It’s one of the best places to raise children in New Jersey," he said. "I feel honored and privileged to have the opportunity to serve as a councilman for the town that has given me so much to make me the person that I am."